Illinois' offense rushed for 38 yards and passed for 153 yards.

Illinois' defense allowed 324 yards rushing and 209 yards passing.

But despite an embarrassing 43-10 loss to Purdue on Saturday, the Illini special teams did their job — and did it well.

All of Illinois' points came from special teams.

Placekicker John Gockman made his 10th field goal of the year on a 28-yard kick in the second quarter. Gockman moves to 10-of-12 on field goals for the year.

Freshman E.B. Halsey scored his first special teams touchdown and the lone Illini touchdown, a 41-yard punt return. This was the second special teams touchdown of the season.

"We are playing with a lot more confidence there, and I guess that's a positive," Illinois head coach Ron Turner said. "We are doing some good things there, and we just have to keep getting them done."

Freshman running back Marcus Mason made his start on special teams, returning five kickoffs for a total of 116 yards.

"Our kickoff returners did really well," punter Matt Minnes said. "Mason, for his first time back there, did a great job of finding the seam. I think he got to the 30-yard line every time."

Special teams also contributed on defense. In the first quarter, defensive end Derrick Strong blocked a Purdue extra-point attempt. And at the end of the first half, cornerback Christian Morton blocked a Purdue field goal attempt.

Quarterback shuffle

Redshirt freshman Chris Pazan got his first game experience as quarterback. Pazan entered the game with less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter for the Illini.

"We just wanted to give him a chance to get out there and see what he could do," Turner said. "It was his first game experience, and we just thought we needed to make the change and give him a chance to see what he could do."

Turner said it would be too early to tell if they would make a more permanent change in quarterback.

Pazan enjoyed his first game experience, completing all five pass attempts for 46 yards.

"It was fun to get out there. I would have been a lot happier if we had gotten the win, but it was the first time getting out there and it was exciting," Pazan said. "There were a little butterflies at first, but they went away after the first play.

"Obviously a big part of playing quarterback is getting experience, and I would like to get out there and get as much experience as possible," he said.

Down and out

Senior defensive tackle Jeff Ruffin did not make the trip to Purdue because of a knee injury he suffered during last week's Wisconsin game.

"Jeff didn't make the trip," Turner said. "We'll see what his status is. I don't know, we'll find out tomorrow. He didn't do much this week, and when we talked to him Thursday and Friday, he just wasn't ready to go."

Freshman safety Alan Ball was injured late in the fourth quarter on a Purdue fumble recovery by Illini linebacker Matt Sinclair. According to Turner, Ball injured his shoulder and was taken immediately for X-rays.

"It doesn't look good," Turner said.

Mason steps up

After missing three weeks of practice and play, Marcus Mason led the Illini rushing game with 19 yards on five carries.

"We are excited about him. He is a good young player," Turner said. "Marcus showed us that (on) gameday he will play like he practices. He's a great competitor, and he's going to be a very good player."

Despite his solid play on both offense and special teams, Mason said he is still working to catch up and tame his nerves.

"I know the plays, but when I got in the game I got nervous," Mason said. "I can see a lot of progress. (The hardest part) is learning the routes — there's a lot of routes."

Looking for consistency

Punter Matt Minnes took some snaps for the Illini on Saturday. Minnes, who has played backup for sophomore punter Steve Weatherford, completed three punts for 127 yards.

"We gave Matt a look," Turner said. "We have to be more consistent there. Steve does a great job in practice but is inconsistent in games, so we thought we would give Matt a look and see what he can do."

Minnes has not played in a game since the season opener against Missouri but said it felt really good to get out there again.

Turner talks

"When you go through times like this and you go through adversity, change is what everyone says you've got to do," Turner said. "I take the opposite approach. We have to stick with what we believe in."